Indian foreign minister meets his Chinese counterpart in Bali, seeks early end to 2-year-long LAC stand-off. EAM talks of fully abiding by bilateral agreements and protocols.
External Affairs Minister (EAM) S. Jaishankar and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi held talks on the sidelines of the G-20 Foreign Ministers’ meeting in Bali on Thursday. During the meeting, Jaishankar conveyed the need for an early resolution of all outstanding issues along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Eastern Ladakh. In what is being viewed as a strong message to his Chinese counterpart, Jaishankar during the talks reaffirmed the importance of fully abiding by bilateral agreements and protocols, and the understandings reached between the two Ministers during their previous conversations.
Diplomats told The Daily Guardian Review that the EAM, in effect, indicated that China was not abiding by the written agreements and protocols. Jaishankar had once come heavily down on Beijing, saying that it is disrespecting the written pacts and understandings in what was in the context of the LAC aggression by the PLA. “What Jaishankar said during the talks with Wang in Bali was in fact carrying the same message,” sources told TDGR. The EAM also reminded Wang of the understandings reached between them on earlier occasions regarding resolving the impasse along the LAC,” sources added.
In what is being viewed as another stern message to Beijing, Jaishankar said that bilateral ties between India and China are best served by observing mutual respect, interests and sensitivity. Sources said that the LAC stand-off and the pending border issues figured prominently during the talks between India’s foreign minister Jaishankar and his counterpart from China Wang Yi.
Recalling the disengagement achieved in some friction areas, EAM reiterated the need to sustain the momentum to complete the disengagement from all the remaining areas to restore peace and tranquility in the border areas. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) release says, “In this regard, both Ministers affirmed that the military and diplomatic officials of the two sides should continue maintaining regular contact and looked forward to the next round of Senior Commanders’ meeting at an early date.”
EAM recalled his meeting with Wang Yi in Delhi in March 2022 and reviewed the progress of some key issues discussed then, including the return of students. EAM stressed the need for expediting the process and facilitating the return of students on an early date.
Jaishankar and Wang also exchanged perspectives on other regional and global developments. Wang Yi appreciated India’s support during China’s BRICS Chairship this year and assured China’s support for India’s upcoming G20 and SCO Presidency.
Jaishankar said the meeting was his first engagement after reaching the Indonesian resort city where the G-20 summit will be held in November, and that the two sides discussed resolving the boundary standoff that began in April 2020. Disengagement at Hot Springs point or PP15, as well as Depsang and Demchok areas occupied by the Chinese side, still remains to be resolved, according to officials.